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Title: Petition of Sundry Citizens of Pottawatomie Creek
Description: This petition, dated September 19, 1856, is addressed to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary and is signed by 32 Kansas citizens living near the Pottawatomie, Sugar, and Middle Creeks and the Osage River. The petitioners describe several recent guerrilla attacks in their region, including the Battle of Osawatomie, and ask for Geary to take action. They complain that the attacks, launched by Missourians and “guided by a few desperate men in our midst,” have succeeded in “sacking and burning houses and in robbing and plundering and menacing the lives of our citizens.”
Object Type: Petition
Date: September 19, 1856

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: In a May 18, 1856 letter to his parents in Massachusetts, Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas announces that “the blow has been struck, the war has begun.” He reports that two men have been killed near Lawrence and that several, including Governor Robinson, have been captured. He expresses concern that Kansas does not have adequate resources for defense, and he appeals for support: “Tell every one who has the least interest in Kansas that now we want help-–men money and arms.”

Title: From James A. Holmes to John W. Geary
Description: This letter, dated October 2, 1856, was written by James A. Holmes on behalf of the people of Osawatomie, Kansas, to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary. Holmes states that on August 30, 1856, a band of 410 Border Ruffians led by Martin White attacked Osawatomie, killing two men and injuring a third before plundering and burning the town. Holmes seeks permission for the citizens of Osawatomie to organize in self-defense against another attack by White.
Date: October 2, 1856

Title: Payne Jones
Description: Charcoal portrait of Payne Jones in hat, shirt, and pullover typical of Quantrill's guerrillas trimmed with buttons along the shoulders, V neck, and tops of pockets. Jones was part of Quantrill's raid on Lawrence, Kansas, August 21, 1863, and the Centralia, Missouri, massacre on September 27, 1864. After the war, he became a member of the James-Younger gang. According to the "Missouri Republican," November 11, 1867, Jones was shot November 6, 1867, during a robbery attempt.
Object Type: Image

Title: Thomas (Tom) Maupin
Description: Charcoal portrait of Thomas (Tom) Maupin wearing a checked shirt covered by a pullover with decorated pockets and decorations around the V neck. Maupin was part of Quantrill's raid on Lawrence, Kansas, August 21, 1863, and the Centralia, Missouri, massacre on September 27, 1864. "Weekly Graphic" of Kirksville, Missouri, April 7, 1882, page 1, relates that Maupin owned several cattle ranches in Texas; other sources say he was killed near Rocheport on May 24, 1865.
Object Type: Image

Title: William T. Anderson
Description: Portrait of William T. "Bloody Bill" Anderson
Object Type: Image
Date: 1864

Title: Unidentified Man
Description: Charcoal portrait of unidentified man with suit coat, vest, shirt, and tie. Drawing is signed by the artist with "93" immediately below the signature.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1893

Title: From Martin White to John W. Geary
Description: This letter, dated October 5, 1856, was sent by Martin White in Miami County, Kansas, to Kansas Governor John Geary. White is frustrated by Geary’s lack of response to his previous requests for troops to protect local citizens against John Brown’s raids. White states that has raised a company of 80 men who wish to be mustered into the U.S. service to help with local defense.
Date: October 5, 1856

Title: William T. Anderson
Description: A photograph of William "Bloody Bill" T. Anderson that appears in the 1914 publication of "Three years with Quantrell; a true story".
Object Type: Image
Date: 1864

Title: From James Griffing to Augusta
Description: This April 6, 1855 letter was written by James Griffing in Wakarusa, Kansas, to Augusta. James has been helping some new “pioneer friends” stake a claim and become settled in Kansas Territory, remarking, “You can hardly think how fast the emigration is pouring in from the free states.” James describes a recent episode of election fraud: “armed forces from Missouri came and took possession of the ballot boxes and pretty much carried on the election as they pleased. Their proceedings will only work against them.”
Date: April 6, 1855

Title: Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence
Description: This print, originally published in Harper's Weekly on September 5, 1863, shows Quantrill and his rebel guerrillas killing the citizens of Lawrence, Kansas, and setting fire to the buildings.
Object Type: Image
Date: September 5, 1863

Title: From James Griffing to Unknown
Description: This letter, dated January 10, 1854 but presumably written January 10, 1855, was sent by James Griffing in Wyandotte County, Kansas to an unknown recipient. James discusses pioneer life in Kansas Territory, claiming that it is not at all dangerous: “Our society is mostly all from the East, and you feel just as much composed as when in New England.” Although James believes Missourians are more dangerous than the American Indians, he insists “there is no more reason for a person who attends to his own business to be afraid here” than anywhere else.
Date: January 10, 1855

Title: Allen H. Parmer
Description: Charcoal portrait of Allen Parmer (sometimes spelled Palmer) with pullover trimmed shirt worn over a checked shirt with tie. Allen Parmer took part in the raid on Lawrence, Kansas, August 21, 1863, the Centralia massacre September 27, 1864, and numerous other skirmishes. In 1870 he married Jesse James' sister Susan. The Parmers lived mostly in Texas after the Civil War. He died in Wichita Falls, Texas, October 25, 1927.
Object Type: Image

Title: Richard (Dick) Burns
Description: Charcoal portrait drawing of Dick Burns in suit, vest, shirt, and hat. Burns enlisted in 1861 and served under Quantrill. He took part in the Lawrence massacre on August 21, 1863. After the war he was a member of the James-Younger Gang and participated in the Richmond, Missouri, bank robbery on May 23, 1867. The Richmond posse found Burns "sleeping in a farmhouse within two miles of Richmond. He was taken outside and strung up on a convenient elm" (Drago, Harry Sinclair, "Road Agents and Train Robbers," p. 158 [MVSC 364.16 D75R]). Other authors say he was killed later by an axe that split open his head.
Object Type: Image

Title: Unidentified Man
Description: Charcoal portrait drawing of unidentified man with long flowing mustache, dressed in suit coat and shirt. Drawing is signed by the artist.
Object Type: Image

Title: The Western Dispatch.
Description: This is the August 17, 1856 evening issue of the Western Dispatch, printed in Independence, Missouri. The newspaper announces that war is "being waged by the Abolitionists," and reports that James Henry Lane, John Brown, and their forces have robbed several Kansas residents and driven them into Missouri. The paper also mentions that Kansas Gov. Wilson Shannon requested aid from the U.S. military, but was refused. A last minute extra, printed at the bottom of the paper, states that Lane and his men have captured Lecompton.
Object Type: Newspaper Article
Date: August 17, 1856

Title: Marais des Cygnes Massacre
Description: Illustration of the Marais des Cygnes Massacre by John R. Chapin copied from "Beyond the Mississippi" by Albert D. Richardson, 1867.
Object Type: Image

Title: James (Jim) Younger
Description: Charcoal portrait of Jim Younger in suit coat, shirt, and tie. Jim Younger, brother to Robert (Bob) and Thomas Coleman (Cole), joined Quantrill's group in 1863. He was part of the Centralia, Missouri, massacre, September 27, 1864. He went with Quantrill to Kentucky near the end of the war and was captured about April 1865. After the war he moved to Texas and in 1870 and 1871 was deputy sherrif of Dallas County, Texas. He later joined the James-Younger gang and was part of the Northfield, Minnesota, bank robbery on September 7, 1876. He was arrested with his brothers and sent to prison at Stillwater, Minnesota. Jim was paroled in 1901 and committed suicide in Minnesota on October 19, 1902. He's buried at the Lee's Summit, Missouri, Cemetery.
Object Type: Image

Title: Unidentified Civil War Soldiers or Guerrillas
Description: Charcoal portrait of two men dressed in cloaks, uniforms, and hats with plumes and holding pistols. Drawing is signed by the artist with "93" immediately below the signature. Each of these has his own portrait (taken from this one) in this same collection by the same artist (MVO-99F and MVO-100F).
Object Type: Image
Date: 1893

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: In a June 29, 1856 letter to his parents in Massachusetts, Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas predicts the onset of war and states that he is happy about it, “for the North needs something to wake them up once.” He also expresses happiness about the recent presidential nomination of John C. Fremont. He anticipates that there will be trouble at the July 4 convention of the Topeka Legislature, stating, “I hope for the best, but fear for the consequences.” He recommends that his parents read the book "Six Months in Kansas" by Hannah Anderson Ropes.
Object Type: Letter
Date: June 29, 1856

Civil War on the Western Border: The Missouri-Kansas Conflict, 1854-1865

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